Lali-ho! We shall see where the road takes us!

Vappy Dalintine’s Hay ladies and gentlebugs! You know, I find it funny that the gifts I get from people on special occasions are from previous students and not the ones currently in my class.

“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.” Bilbo Baggins

As my husband’s schooling winds down, we find ourselves examining options and preparing to make big scary leaps of faith into the great, wide world beyond this smallness that we inhabit at the moment. I don’t know what’s with the waxing poetical, but I’ll try to keep that at a minimum. Maybe it’s just the abject terror that makes me lyrical?

There are several things that we’ve been considering as I desperately scrounge the web for some glimmer of an idea of what the hell I’m going to do once I say farewell to the frustrating (but familiar) world of education. (Okay, deep breath… In. Out. Better? Not so much…) Aaron (The husband. keep up, will you!) will be getting his degree in Communications (with a focus in theater, TV and film) in December so he’ll be looking for something having to do with TV and film. Which, in turn, means that we will have to move away. Far away. The closest possibility is Austin (300 miles) and the furthest is taking a (flying) leap and going overseas.

Going overseas is intriguing and (as I mentioned to twitter) carries the possibility of teaching English abroad. There’s a training center in Prague (about 6,000 miles from home) that we’re looking at as a possible jumping point if we decide to go that route, but just the thought of leaving everything we know and is familiar behind makes my anxiety level vault into epic heights. Still, though, it’s a very real option… The biggest deterrent (funnily enough) is that we would probably have to get rid of the cats which is not a prospect we take lightly. The other thing is the question of what Aaron would do while I’m teaching in “exotic” locations. Lack of the language would seriously impede employment and I know he’s ready to be a largely contributing member of our family unit.

Stateside, we are looking at a few different locals as well. As I mentioned, Austin is a possibility, though a bit boring as we wouldn’t even be going out of state. This might be a more reasonable option, though, since I’m certified to teach in Texas (even though I want out of the teaching game) and Aaron has never lived anywhere but here and we’ve at least visited Austin fairly regularly the last couple of years, so it wouldn’t be too terribly traumatic for him.

Los Angeles is another option. It’s (traditionally) where movie folks congregate, so there’s that. I don’t have any idea what I would do in L.A. while he works at getting into the field, but I’m sure I could find something to occupy myself and contribute.

Seattle, too, has appeared on our radar. Largely because I’ve lived there before and know some people (which is unique to all of the places we’re considering) and because we know there are some delightfully nerdy things that go on there. Plus, Washington is really pretty. (See how grown up our reasoning is? SEE???)

And that’s where we are right now. Mostly lost, weighing options and priorities and planning. And these decisions need to be made ASAP! Our lease is up for renewal, December is right around the corner (when measured in grown up time) and no matter what we decided, steps will need to be taken.

Things are changing and I’m terrified and exhilerated and I can’t wait to see what happens!

I wonder if the reasoning that other “adult” people use is just as arbitrary and they come up with something more mature sounding after the decision is already made. And besides, we’re young, right? No time like the present for being impulsive!

We really need to decide as soon as possible so we can start planning. The lease on our apartment and any arrangements we can make in regards to that will factor in a lot as well as the job market in any given area. It’s a sure thing that we will be staying put at least until the middle of July for me and the end of December for my husband. I’m not sure if we’re going to go the responsible route and feel out jobs before we head somewhere or go wild and reckless and just pick somewhere and let the chips fall as they may. (Probably the former. I only wish I was that brave!)

While I do wish you and Aaron the best and pray for the Lord’s hand of grace and favor on whatever lies ahead … I will say I’ll miss you guys if you do end up leaving. Sadly the whole dynamic of our friend group is changing, what with the other married couple being preggers and you and Aaron moving on … I knew this time would come, people I’ve grown close to end up leaving or growing apart as we get further into “Real” adulthood. But that’s life, if things didn’t change life would get boring. As much as I kinda wish we were all 23 and 24 yrs old again hanging out at Wendy’s on a Wednesday night … I know and believe great things are in store for you all. Sorry, I didnt expect to leave this long of a comment. Just kinda came out …. “thats what she said”. haha

I know what you mean. Even now that we don’t get to spend as much time all together as we used to, it just feels like some kind of precursor to a bigger, scarier future of long distant friendship. (Which, let me just say in advance, unless it’s online, I’m really, really bad at keeping contact with people.) But you’re right, moving is just another on of those “grown up” things that we have to contend with. We’ll miss you, too, though.